New Westminster, B.C. – The City of New Westminster is excited to announce the winners of the reGENERATE Ideas Challenge for the 22nd Street SkyTrain Station neighbourhood. The ideas challenge, aimed at surfacing innovative climate-friendly urban design ideas, will inform the creation of a vision for the neighbourhood’s development. The challenge garnered over 80 submissions from a diverse group of participants, ranging from youth to professionals, local to international.

After careful deliberation by a diverse jury panel comprised of an architect, climate and community planners, and community representatives, four winning ideas across three categories plus two honourable mentions were selected. The public also voted for their favourite design. These winning entries embody the creativity, passion, and enthusiasm of proud community members and environmentally-conscious professionals towards shaping an inclusive and climate-friendly future.

“We commend all participants for their outstanding contributions and commitment to enhancing the livability and vibrancy of our city. Together, we are shaping a brighter future for New Westminster,” said Mayor Patrick Johnstone.  

For the Top Comprehensive Idea, the jury was looking for a submission that considered the entire neighbourhood, and settled on two tied winners. The Same Station in an Urban City by JIM Architecture stood out for its in-depth proposals for land use and landscape design, the transportation network, and the pedestrian experience. 22nd Street Courtyard Community by Peter Williams and Jamie Eden was noted for its focus on social connection through semi-public and public spaces.

The Top Local Community Idea winner was A Vision for the Future by Monkey Rebel, a group of local youths. This thoughtful submission stood out for its variety of impactful and feasible suggestions to incrementally transform the neighbourhood into a climate-friendly and community-oriented one.

The winning Top Youth Idea was submitted by Christian Zollner. Destination Connaught Heights took a comprehensive planning approach in proposing form-based zoning, complete streets designs, and options for improved traffic circulation, one of the key concerns identified by community members during engagement.

Two designs were given Honourable Mentions by the jury: Sensory Park by Carter Canton proposed a park with five sensory experiential components; and We are the Memory We Inhabit by Fiorella Pinillos, Natalia Botero, and Johanna Pabon, proposed centering memory into every aspect of the neighbourhood, a concept rooted in Indigenous tradition.

After a two week voting period in February, where community members were given 20 shortlisted submissions from which to select their favourite design, We are the Memory We Inhabit was voted the winner of the Community’s Choice Award.

 “We are energized by the range of ideas brought forward in the ideas challenge submissions, to help us think boldly on climate and social connectedness, and we look forward to exploring how some of these concepts could land in the 22nd Street Station neighbourhood context,” said Director of Climate Action, Planning and Development, Jackie Teed.

The next step in this project will consist of workshopping the winning ideas, standout elements from the rest of the submissions, and the feedback provided by the community during engagement sessions, into an emerging vision for a climate-friendly neighbourhood. The public are invited to drop-in at New Westminster City Hall on March 7 between 6:00 to 8:00 pm to view a display of preliminary concepts and provide comments or ask questions. The draft vision will continue to be developed through 2024, and there will be more opportunities for the public to provide input before the vision is finalized.

To view the winning designs in detail and for more information about the 22nd Street SkyTrain Station neighbourhood vision, visit: newwestcity.ca/reGENERATE

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Media Contact:

Melissa Nilan
Communications Coordinator
City of New Westminster
604-515-3808 |